Arizona’s Family On Your Side

It's a word we seem to hear a lot these days: Inflation. Everything from auto insurance to groceries have spike over the past few years. In fact, recent published reports indicate buying groceries have gone up a whopping 23 percent since the pandemic. That means what used to cost you $100 at the grocery store now costs $123. So, what can you do to save some money when it comes to buying food at the store? Today, Rachel West joins us on the On Your Side podcast. She's a registered dietician and editor for eMeals and has some creative ideas to make grocery shopping a little less painful.

Prices are going up for pretty much everything. That includes subscriptions. Think about how many you have, from streaming services, to wholesale clubs, to gym memberships, and music. According to tech site CNET, "subscription creep" is a very real thing and it’s eating into a lot of budgets. On average, we spend $91 bucks a month on subscription services. And nearly half of us have signed up for a free trial...and then we’ve forgotten to cancel it. Today, we’re talking with Nick Wolney. He is CNET’s managing editor, and he’s going to walk us through ways to save on subscriptions and some different methods to manage them.

We earn. We save. We spend. But how much of that work are we sharing with our kids? April is Financial Literacy Month and our guest today is Sharon Lechter, the New York Times bestselling author of "Rich Dad, Poor Dad." She’s going to help us raise smart savers. We’ll talk about introducing basic financial concepts to little ones and how to get teens involved in big household decisions about money.

Have you ever thought about how much fine print you actually encounter? From big purchases to smaller contracts, we sign our names on the dotted line a lot. The National Association of Consumer Advocates just issued a report showing some of the worst of the worst in standard form contracts that consumers regularly sign. So today, we’re chatting with the organization’s Christine Hines. She is a senior policy director. She’ll break down red flags to watch for and if there are actually ways around these contracts that may not be in your best interest.

Chances are you have at least one if not more credit cards in your wallet. In fact, a recent report indicated that half of Americans have two or more credit cards. And rewards credit cards seem to be pretty popular with consumers. These kind of cards have perks like cash back or points that you can apply and reduce airfare. But with all the benefits, rewards credit cards come with some risk. Today, Richard Barrington joins us on the On Your Side podcast. He's a financial analyst for Credit Sesame and has worked for 30 years in the financial industry. He says rewards credit cards are deceptive and can lead some consumers into debt.

Getting a notice that your vehicle has some type of manufacturer recall is never good news. However, in most cases, dealerships can get you in and fix the problem for free. But, when they can't...that's a problem. Sometimes, parts are not available, leaving motorists driving a potentially dangerous vehicle. In fact, right now, there are 3.7 million vehicles that are on the road that have "Park Outside" recalls because they can catch on fire. So motorists are encouraged to not park in their garage. Today, Mike Lavigne joins us on the On Your Side podcast. He's with Carfax, which just released concerning data involving "Park Outside" recalls. He says there's been a 40-percent spike in these recalls since last year. So, what can you do as a consumer?

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety just released its first results from tests on more than a dozen partial automation systems. What they found may be concerning and reveals there’s a lot of potential for drivers to misuse those features. Today, David Harkey joins us on the On Your Side podcast. He’s the President of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. We’re talking about how these safety features are tested and changes already on the horizon to make the road and your car safer for you.

Rising interest rates have made all kinds of loans more expensive. They’ve also made lenders pickier about who actually gets money. A recent Bankrate survey shows half of people who’ve applied for a financial product have been denied since the Fed started raising rates in march of 2022. So today, we’re talking with Bankrate’s Sarah Foster about this trend. We discuss who’s mostly likely to be denied for loans and new credit cards and the ways you can improve your credit score to make you more credit-worthy.

Spring break season is right around the corner, and summer vacation will be here before you know it. Once you’re at your destination, the fun can begin. But actually getting there can be full of annoyances, like hogging that middle arm rest on the airplane. We’re talking with travel expert Katy Nastro from Going about some of the top traveler complaints, some the unspoken rules you should never break when you board, and we’ll answer the burning question: What’s better? The aisle seat or the window seat?

If you have a car payment, is it a little bit more than you can afford? You're not alone. The average auto payment right now for a new car is $726, and for a used cars it's $533. Brian Moody joins us on the podcast. He's the executive editor for Autotrader and he tells us what the pros and cons are right now if you're thinking of refinancing, or buying a vehicle.

It's a topic many of us don't talk about until we absolutely have to: Planning a funeral. When people are faced with losing a loved one, many don't know exactly what to do, who to contact or how much a funeral or cremation is going to cost. So in this episode, Ed Reggie joins us on the On Your Side podcast. He's a consumer advocate who specializes in educating folks on funeral planning. He's also the founder of Funeralocity, a website that breaks down the costs at individual funeral homes across the nation, no matter where you live.

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, so we’re talking about love and money. If you’re dating someone, when should you start talking about finances? Our guest is Angelica Prescod. She’s a financial advisor is Scottsdale. She’s going to help us tackle some big questions about budgets, retirement accounts, debts you owe to old flames, and what you need to tell your new partner.

With tax season here, we’re talking with Mark Steber, the Chief Tax Information Officer at Jackson Hewitt who is the company’s liaison with the IRS. He’s the perfect guy to help us understand what we need to know about filing our tax returns this year. What’s the best way for taxpayers get organized and get ready to file? And is there actually a benefit to filing early?

It's a common problem. You wait patiently for concert tickets to go on sale and the moment they're made available, you discover they're sold out. It's called Scarcity Marketing and it's not just happening with concert tickets. Popular video games, name brand handbags, even shoes have been known to have Scarcity Marketing. Today, Jesper Essendrop joins us on the On Your Side podcast. He's the CEO of Queue-it which tries to prevent Scarcity Marketing. He explains how Scarcity Marketing works and what you the consumer can do to avoid it.

We just entered a new year and it's time to take inventory of a few important items, and one of them is insurance. We're talking about home, auto, and even life insurance. Chances are you may be paying too much for them. So, today on the On Your Side podcast, we're talking to Mike Gallagher of Trusted Choice which represents the members of the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America. He'll explain why insurance has dramatically increased over the past few years and what you can do to save yourself some money on some if not all of your insurance policies.

Many consumers will soon be getting their credit card statements for last month's holiday shopping season. Will you be in good financial shape, or will you have a little sticker shock? Today, on the On Your Side podcast, we're talking to Kelsa Dickey. She's a financial coach with Financial Fitness. She'll tell us what we need to do to start reeling in our credit card debt, so we can have a debt free 2024.

The holiday season means merriment, parties, and good food. It also means we may also be packing on a little extra weight. Between parties and dinners, the calories can quickly add up. So what can you do to get back in shape without a big gym membership or an expensive piece of exercise equipment? We're joined by Jim Bathurst, who is head of Nerd Fitness. He provides some great advice and tips to lose those holiday pounds.

We're approaching the end of 2023 and we want to take a look forward to see what 2024 may have in store when it comes to real estate. 2023 was a roller coaster ride for real estate. Interest rates sky rocked and as a result, that meant home sales decreased significantly with leaving little inventory. So, today Trevor Halpern joins us on the On Your Side podcast. He's an Arizona real estate agent whose won numerous sales awards over the course of numerous years and has a pulse on where the real estate market may be heading.

For next school year, there’s a new, easier-to fill-out FAFSA. That’s the free application for federal student aid. The FAFSA is typically available for students and their families in the fall. This year, it won’t be ready until the end of December. But there are plenty of ways to get ready for the new school year right now. Our guest today is Arizona Treasurer Kimberly Yee. She’s going to walk us through some of the things you need to know about student aid and 529 plans, including what this money can be used for, tax deductions, and changes taking effect in the new year to make 529s easier to use.

The holiday season is here and chances are you'll be doing some if not all of your shopping online. But with that convenience comes risk. Scammers are waiting for you to make one small mistake allowing them to hack into your computer. You don't want that to happen, so today we're talking to Luke Secrist who's the CEO of a company called BuddoBot. BuddoBot has a team of engineers and professional hackers who will tell us all we need to know about staying safe while shopping online.